A man who spent more than two years in jail on gun charges in Champaign County has been released after a judge says that the state didn't bring him to trial within an appropriate timeframe. Champaign County Judge Heidi Ladd dismissed armed habitual criminal charges against 43-year-old Kevin Pettis. He was accused of firing a gun into the air during an incident in July 2013 in Champaign. He was released Nov. 16. State's Attorney Julia Rietz says she plans to ask an appeals court to review Ladd's ruling.
Ladd had earlier granted a request from Pettis' attorney to have the search of his home ruled invalid. The prosecution appealed that ruling in March 2014, and the appeals court reversed it in July 2015 and sent the case back for trial.